Miniature Illions Standing Carousel Horse

- Item No.

Key Features

Though miniature in size, this Illions carousel horse is great in personality and importance

Almost certainly part of a children's carousel, this petite pony boasts bright, colorful detailing

Only one period children's carousel, featuring horses such as this, still exists today

Circa 1920

28" length x 25 ¾" high

Item Details

Height:
25 3/4 Inches

Length:
28 Inches

Period:
20th Century

Origin:
America

This delightful miniature Illions stander carousel horse is the perfect size for a pint-sized cowboy or girl. Standing at only a fraction of the size of a standard carousel horse, this little steed would almost certainly been part of a children's carousel, and metal brackets on its sides indicate that this little pony would have stood stationary rather than "galloped." Carved in the style of Marcus Illions carousel horses, it is almost identical to those used in W. F. Mangels' legendary roving merry-go-round, the "Children's Delight" Kiddy Carousel. With its twinkling glass eyes, brightly painted trappings and jeweled accents, this prancing beauty is truly one of the last of its kind.

Circa 1920

28" length x 25 ¾" high

The golden age of the carousel lasted roughly from 1905 to 1925, and was effectively halted by the Great Depression. Most of the carvers and builders of American carousel menageries were German or Russian immigrants to the United States. William F. Mangels was an amusement manufacturer and inventor who helped to create the American amusement park as we know it today. A German immigrant who opened his own amusement ride factory in Coney Island only four years after coming to the U.S., he specialized in carousels, and enlisted the services of Coney Island's best wood carvers and mechanics, many of whom were immigrants themselves. Both Marcus Illions and the partnership of Stein & Goldstein were employed by or supplied Mangels with horses for his rides. In 1907, he patented a version of the overhead gears that controlled the up-and-down "galloping" motion of the horses. This design soon became the standard, and Mangels then began work on new and exciting rides. The W.F. Mangels "Children's Delight" carousels were smaller, hand-cranked versions of park rides that were mounted to a horse-drawn vehicle to be pulled from one place to another. First introduced circa 1910, they were banned from streets as motor traffic increased, and soon disappeared. In fact there is only one left in the world!